Guatemala!!!

Hello and welcome to my first blog post! I recently went on my first mission trip to Guatemala and had a fantastic experience. It was amazing getting to spend time in a different culture and see and meet the wonderful people of Guatemala.

We left for Atlanta on Tuesday after work and flew out for Guatemala on Wednesday morning. (quick aside I had a steroid shot to get over a cold on Monday and got about 3 hours sleep on Monday night, great way to start a trip) Our trip went without a hitch until the overbooked the flight and the person who gave up their seat's luggage had to be removed from the plane which took about an hour. The person sitting next to me spoke Spanish and wanted to talk the whole time which made things quite difficult. I think we managed to confuse each other thoroughly.

We made it to Guatemala City, boarded the bus (a school bus that is) and had some fried chicken. Yes fried chicken. Apparently Pollo Campero is a big deal in Guatemala so we passed around a box and each grabbed a piece of chicken for lunch. After a 4 hour bus ride I realized I am not made for buses and after crowbaring my knees out of the seat in front of me we arrived at Chichiconstanega. The bus ride was shocking/beautiful/uncomfortable/tiring. Going from Guatemala City with Chucky Cheese's, McDonalds, and Pizza Hut to a tienda every mile, cows, chickens, people walking which seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. A quick note about the roads if you enjoy driving in the mountains, 180 curves, random stops of 40 mins for road construction, random areas of no pavement whatsoever, and a constant stream of school buses flying around you, Guatemala is the place for you. Wednesday night we had dinner at the hotel which was beautiful and it was off to bed.

Thursday was my first day as a medical missionary. About half our group went to Xianop and the other half went to a school. We actually used a families home to set up our clinic. Can you imagine having a doctor's office in your bedroom? It was such a joy to get to see the children and adults so excited to receive treatments. Although there were plenty of tears after teeth were pulled. Speaking of getting to pull teeth I pulled my first tooth today. Pretty exciting. I got to help about 6 patients with physical therapy needs which was fun. The family that hosted the clinic also cooked for us a delicious meal!

The next day we got to travel to Paxot Segundo(in Guatemala several villages will share the same name and then be first, second, third etc.) This place was beautiful. The church hosted us today and there were tons of people there. I set up shop in the auditorium with a wooden table. Not exactly the best for PT but we made do. I had Juan and Mary Beth (a previous missionary to Guatemala). We had to have a spanish to english translator and then a Spanish to Qui-Che translator. I got to enjoy a traditional Guatemalan drink, salsa verde, pulled two more teeth and enjoyed God's beautiful scenery. I also took a beach ball for the kids to play with and we had a blast. It was another great day followed by a wonderful fish dinner and great devo!

Saturday we headed in the school bus to Chichipacat. This was a very rural area and it seemed like everyone from miles away were there. We again were in the local church and we were busy all day! I saw probably around 16 patients (along with a few of our own group). I think all told we treated about 150 people. The people are amazingly patient. They sit all day waiting their turn without restlessness or complaining. The children are well behaved and so excited to play games, sing songs, paint fingernails, and play with beach balls. I got to help a 87 year old woman here who wouldn't stop stretching she said it felt so good. It was great to be able to educate these hardworking people to help ease their pain. I had Sandy Sims and Juan as my translators today and we made a great team! We made the long journey home and prepared for market day.

Market day was a blast, I enjoyed getting to negotiate the price and see all the handiwork. They had fabric and jewelry, masks, drums, bags, and all kinds of products. One thing is for sure don't get in there way or slow them down on market day. They will push you out of the way in a hurry. I did feel like a giant with all the shorter Guatemalans around me. I didn't seem to get haggled to much, I guess they either thought I was poor or wasn't interested. Sunday afternoon we made the long bus ride back to Guatemala City, had a delicious steak dinner and readied to head back home.

Monday's flight was pretty uneventful except it took us 1 hour and 45 mins to escape Atlanta's airport. Ridiculas. I was excited to get home and see Rachel and sleep in my own bed! I was also pretty excited to see Chik-Fil-A. It was a great trip and I can't wait to go back!